iPhone out on Orange today

O2's exclusivity on the iPhone is officially over. The iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS is out on Orange today, on tariffs that surprisingly don't undercut O2's tariffs by much.

The iPhone 3GS 16GB is available free on 24-month, £45 a month contracts (same as O2's offering), with 1200 minutes, 500 texts and 'unlimited' data, really capped at 750MB a month. The only price difference is in the iPhone 3G, which is available free on £30 a month, 2-year contracts, vs O2's £35 a month tariff.

Orange claims the UK's widest 3G coverage (though this is contested by 3), which may give its iPhone the edge over O2's. But then Vodafone enters the mix in January, when it too will offer the iPhone 3G/S... Perhaps then we'll see some proper iPhone Wars?

The Orange iPhone is available now in all 402 UK Orange stores, its online shop, telesales channels, Orange HMV concessions, Apple Retail Stores, Carphone Warehouse, Phones4U and other selected high street partners.